Former Myrtle Beach City Manager John Pedersen was one of the most feared men in Myrtle Beach City Government until his retirement in December 2020.
Equally despised by former city employees and downtown merchants, yet Pedersen was loved by current Mayor Brenda Bethune.
Former Myrtle Beach City Manager John Pedersen took the stand today after former Business License Director and Finance team member Mary McDowell was grilled by Plaintiff Attorney Tucker Player.
McDowell was handed hundreds of pages of over 4,000 complaints from the Myrtle Beach Police on the Fontainebleau Hotel.
Plaintiff Attorney Tucker Player asked McDowell why she never took the Fontainebleau‘s business license. Noam Pyade, the motel’s owner, sat on the board of the Downtown Redevelopment Corporation.
McDowell said she could only take the licenses of those with a nuisance complaint provided by Myrtle Beach police. During her tenure in office, McDowell (now retired) stated Myrtle Beach police had never given her such a complaint on the Fountain Bleau. The police never recommended closing it.
Player asked McDowell if she believed if the city should file complaints and take away the business licenses from businesses the city desired to purchase. McDowell said, “Yes.”
Once Pedersen took the stand, he stated that the multiple shootings created a public safety concern and that was why the Superblock merchants were targeted.
Player then handed Pedersen a series of emails between Pedersen, David Sebok, the Police Chief, City Attorney Tom Ellenburgh and others where the back and forth correspondence concerned the city’s targeting of the Superblock.
Pederson stated in those November 2015 emails that his main concern for targeting the Superblock was public safety.
Player pointed out that the shootings in Pure Club Ultra and Natalia’s did not happen until long after those email exchanges occurred.
Player told Pedersen that the shooting that occurred down the street from Club Levelz happened on city property.
Pedersen reiterated his concern was for Public Safety, avoiding the timing inconsistencies on the email exchanges altogether.
One key exchange involved an email sent out by then Myrtle Beach City Councilman Wayne Gray.
Myrtle Beach City Attorney James Battle objected to the email being read in court, claiming it was a privileged communication.
During a sidebar, Player pointed out that the email had been covered in multiple news outlets after MyrtleBeachSC News broke the story in 2016.
Judge Joseph Dawson over ruled Battle’s objection and the email was read by Pedersen.
Player highlighted Gray’s words, “various concerns to also include does it hurt legally and politically our move to acquire the properties…. I have discussed with Phil (Councilman Phil Render), Mary (Councilwoman Mary Jeffcoat), and Mike Lowder (Councilman) and will talk to others today and tomorrow.
EVERYONE NOW KNEW
With our publishing of this news item in 2016, every business owner, every city employee, every merchant, and practically every resident knew the City of Myrtle Beach intended to purchase the Superblock businesses. Yet the harassments only accelerated.
MIKE BATTLE WANTS THE ELEMENTS OF THE CASE THROWN OUT
After the jury was excused, City Attorney Mike Battle claimed the Plaintiff’s attorneys had not proven that Pedersen acted outside the scope of his authority as city manager. Battle asked the judge to have Pedersen personally removed from the complaint.
Player reiterated a litany of email exchanges that Player said proved Pedersen had acted outside the scope of his job.
Battle then argued that the Plaintiffs attorneys had not proven a conspiracy. He cited case precedent.
PLayer argued the Plaintiffs had proven such.
The judge said he would spend the weekend investigating those claims.
If those elements are not thrown out by the Judge on Monday morning, closing arguments from each side will be heard and the jury will be charged with deliberating and making a decision on the case.